Business Planning: A Comprehensive Framework and Process

(Hardback)

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This practical guide to the entire business planning process from start to finish provides a framework for: conceiving the vision of the firm defining the purpose of the firm, its overall business mission setting business goals and strategies for achieving them understanding the external environment and competitive setting outside the firm establishing operating plans for major functions implementing control and review processes and executing the plan, providing signposts when changes in strategy will be needed This comprehensive approach to planning is presented in a concise, easy-to-read manner by a seasoned planning professional to help you achieve success. Entrepreneurs undertaking a start-up, owners of small businesses seeking to grow, corporate planners interested in refocusing their strategy and mission, and not-for-profit organizations or government agencies looking to improve performance will find this book useful. More than that, it provides the theoretical underpinnings for business planning, the rationale, as well as the road map. The author has extensive experience writing and reviewing actual business plans for his clients as well as those of his students, many of whom bring their experiences as midcareer professionals to bear. This book provides the practitioner and the business student with an understanding of the importance of business planning, suggestions for how to approach the planning process and where to find resources, and a framework for business plan preparation and implementation. The three core purposes of the business plan--to identify various possible courses of action, to provide a frame of reference for making decisions that will work toward the company's goals, and to establish both short-term and long-term objectives--are useful for firms of any size or age: entrepreneurial start-ups, small businesses, major corporations, global firms, nonprofits, and government agencies.

Reviews

"An extremely useful and practical guide to the critical task of strategic planning in our new economic environment...I recommend it with equal fervor to someone starting a new business, to an experienced executive overseeing a global business unit, or to a business student who aspires to be either one of these." From the Foreword by Jose de la Torre Professor of International Business Strategy, The Anderson School at UCLA Past President of the Academy of International Business "Dr. Truitt has created what I have been seeking...a primer on the subject that enables the reader to apply immediately relevant concepts without having to wade through torturous prose. His book makes generous use of recent examples to illustrate why and how to apply business planning tools. Dr. Truitt devotes a significant portion of the book to analyzing the environment external to the firm, making this text highly pertinent for developing and implementing business plans during the dynamically changing environment of the 21st century." Donald M. DePamphilis Clinical Professor of Finance and Computer Information Systems Loyola Marymount University "New Economy or Old Economy, the demand for concise and thoughtful business planning has never been greater no matter the size or type of organization. Both academics and business planners have learned a great deal about the dynamic planning process which organizations have used in the past. Dr. Truitt's book provides a knowledgeable, modern blue print from start to finish that can provide valuable guidance to business planners and is easily adaptable to a variety of organizational models." Bruce G. Willison Dean The John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA "A superb reference guide." Wesley W. Posvar Professor of International Politics, President Emeritus, University of Pittsburgh

Author Bio

WESLEY B. TRUITT is Executive-in-Residence at the College of Business Administration, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, where he teaches business planning to MBA and Executive MBA students. He is also Adjunct Professor at the Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA and Principal of Truitt Consulting, which assists organizations with business planning and strategic positioning. For 26 years, Truitt was a senior executive at Northrop Grumman Corporation.